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On the other hand, those who are not deluded, the great souls (mahātmānas), are under the shelter (āśritāḥ) of the divine nature (daivīṁ prakṛtim). They are exclusively (ananya-manaso) and directly engaged in Krishna’s devotional service (bhajanty) knowing (jñātvā) Krishna as the inexhaustible (avyayam) source of everyone (bhūtādim). (BG 9.13) How exactly are they engaged? Always (satataṁ) chanting Krishna’s (māṁ) glories (kīrtayanto), endeavoring (yatantaś) with great determination (dṛḍha-vratāḥ), and bowing down (namasyantaś) before Krishna (māṁ), these great souls are eternally engaged (nitya-yuktā) with devotion (bhaktyā). (BG 9.14)

Yet others (anye), who engage in the sacrifice of knowledge (jñāna-yajñena), worship Krishna (mām) in oneness (ekatvena), in diverse forms (pṛthaktvena bahudhā), or in the universal form (viśvato-mukham). (BG 9.15) These are 3 categories of indirect worshipers of Krishna, who had been referred to as jñānīs (in BG 7.16) but of lower order. Those who deride the transcendental form of Krishna (BG 9.11–12) tend to worship Krishna in oneness or think of themselves as one with Krishna.

Krishna next elaborates on the vision of the worshipers of the universal form, who conceive of Krishna’s universal form within the manifest universe. They see Krishna (ahaṁ) as the ritual (kratur), the sacrifice (yajñaḥ), the oblation (svadhā), the healing herb (auṣadham), the transcendental chant (mantro), the clarified butter (ājyam), the fire (agnir), and the offering (hutam). (BG 9.16)

Before going into this section, let’s recall Krishna’s magic formula for escaping the formidable clutches of illusion – surrender (prapadyante) unto Krishna alone or exclusively (mām eva). (BG 7.14)

Unfortunately, those whose knowledge has been stolen away (hṛta-jñānāḥ) by material desires (kāmais) will not be ready to surrender unto Krishna. They will surrender (prapadyante ) unto other gods (anya-devatāḥ) following the rules and regulations (niyamam āsthāya) under the influence of the modes of material nature (prakṛtyā niyatāḥ). (BG 7.20) Krishna does not interfere with anyone’s free will. He instead gives steadiness of faith (acalāṁ śraddhāṁ) in the respective god to such deviant worshipers. (BG 7.21) Whatever desires (kāmān) get fulfilled by faithfully (śraddhayā yuktas) worshiping (ārādhanam) other gods are in actuality arranged (vihitān) by Krishna alone (mayaiva). (BG 7.22) So, we can infer here that these other gods (anya-devatāḥ) being referred here are not really Supreme God but evidently subservient to and dependent upon Krishna. Therefore, they can be referred to as demigods.

Because such worship of the demigods is being conducted outside the jurisdiction of Krishna’s advice, the result (phalaṁ) obtained by this process is temporary (antavat) and such worshipers are said to have limited intelligence (alpa-medhasām). Whatever desires we may cultivate have a long-term effect, even beyond the current lifetime. Not only the results obtained by the worship of the demigods is temporary but the destination is also temporary. Those who worship demigods (deva-yajo) go to the planets of the demigods while those who worship Krishna (mad-bhaktā) go to the eternal abode of Krishna. (BG 7.23) We can conclude here that not all worship result in the same destination and therefore it is in our best interest to strictly stick to the aforementioned magic formula of surrendering unto Krishna alone.

Apart from this deviant class of spiritualists (viz., the demigod worshipers) whom Krishna referred to as the less intelligent class (alpa-medhasām), there is another class which is far worse – Krishna calls them the unintelligent class (abuddhayaḥ). Why? Because they are not only spiritually deviated but also have an offensive disposition toward Krishna. How? They think that the unmanifest impersonal Absolute Truth (avyaktaṁ) has now assumed an individual personal form (vyaktim āpannaṁ) as Krishna for the time being. Unfortunately, they don’t understand (ajānanto) Krishna’s ultimate (anuttamam) supreme (paraṁ) imperishable (avyayam) nature (bhāvam). (BG 7.24) Krishna chooses not to reveal Himself (nāhaṁ prakāśaḥ) to this unintelligent class and they remain covered by a curtain of illusion (yoga-māyā-samāvṛtaḥ). Hence, it is impossible for such foolish (mūḍha) thinkers to understand Krishna, especially His unborn (ajam) and imperishable (avyayam) nature. (BG 7.25)

In summary, we can become spiritually deviated in two ways – (i) when we take to demigod worship (forgetting that Krishna advocates an exclusive surrender), and far worse, (ii) when we assume that God is ultimately impersonal.